Harvesting Language Learning: Pumpkin Picks
The end of the first half term is about consolidating learning, so it’s time to revisit and reflect. This blog post details a range of activities and resources from Stage 1 to Stage 3 and 4 learners, who are now able to write descriptive sentences with nouns and adjectives, share emotions and feelings, and produce sentences with opinions. This activity pack is available in both French and Spanish in our shop. For network members, you can find this for free under Seasonal Specials on the VLE.
Pumpkin Picking
A sequence of activities for new starters (Stage 1) that encourages language detective skills. Listen out for sounds, recall and practise basic numbers 1-10 and play with the sounds of the new nouns.
Link this learning to ‘growing and ripening’ sounds and knowledge. You could play a simple voice control game with sounds.
As the teacher, listen to and observe how your young learners are developing their new language learning skills and retaining core language and content. Use this to reflect on the next steps.
Pumpkin Maths
A great cross-curricular activity to practise numbers 1-10 for Stage 1, and go higher for Stage 2 upwards.
This is a great follow-up task to reinforce numbers and link language learning in a purposeful way to Maths. Practise either addition or multiplication and re-use French or Spanish spoken language. Take this further to practise subtraction and division, and extend the target language number range to suit your learners’ knowledge. For a great further extension, create your own pumpkin vegetable plot diagrams to show their understanding of addition and multiplication.
Pumpkin Pages - read all about it!
A great way to revisit the content from Autumn 1 SOW.
Generate ‘The Pumpkin Pages’ booklets that allow you to take a look at the core content children have already learnt, and see what they can remember. Explore some common sound links shared in different target language core words.
Create ‘Pumpkin Personalities’ which allow the children (whether they are beginners or more advanced) to imagine and create their own written pumpkin personalities and explore how they can use limited language creatively. These ‘Pumpkin Pages’ can be shared to make a harvest of language learning display.
Pumpkin Lantern Parades
A fun activity which can be adapted for the classroom or the playground.
And finally, read, mime, play charades, design, and write a description of your own pumpkin lanterns. In this activity, there is a focus on writing descriptive sentences, using feminine nouns and adjectives that agree.
Why not take the activity a stage further in French and the placement of adjectives of size (e.g. grand/petit) too and how these adjectives come before the noun?
Parade those lanterns! Get out in the playground and hold a pumpkin lantern display, where the children show each other their pumpkin lantern designs and read aloud the descriptive sentences they have written. Why not film the children too and share them with other classes?